Morden College, Lewisham
Morden College, Lewisham
Our urbanism and conservation teams prepared a masterplan for Morden College’s site in Blackheath, London, which includes a Grade I listed seventeenth century Quadrangle.
Morden College is a historic almshouse charity founded in 1695 by pioneering merchant, Sir John Morden. We were asked to explore sustainable refurbishment options for the Quad as part of a holistic site-wide plan which considered opportunities for a village square and enhancements to the landscape and movement arrangements of the site.
We first assessed the significance of the College’s assets to inform the development of a spatial plan for the future of their residential sites in line the College’s charitable objectives and emerging strategy. Our conservation and urbanism teams then assessed options for returning the Grade I-listed quadrangle (1695–1702) to its original almshouse use, following resident decant due to fire safety and accessibility issues. The design strategy developed in collaboration with West Scott Architects proposed reuniting former upper and lower flats into 22 two-storey townhouse units, reinstating original layouts, and limiting fire and acoustic separation works to existing brick party walls. Ground floors would contain accessible bedrooms and bathrooms; upper floors would provide living rooms with small kitchens, plus an additional bedroom or reception room and WC. This approach avoids intrusive step-free alterations, with more accessible housing provided elsewhere on site. We undertook stakeholder engagement with Historic England and the Royal Borough of Greenwich, who both noted minimal harm and heritage benefits.
We also set out how corner ranges would be adapted for specific uses: SW corner (CEO House) retained as a four-storey residence; the NW corner converted to staff or rental accommodation (or retained as offices); the NE and SE corners adapted for resident or guest units. Potential later phases would address the North Wing (1850–1922), repurposing dining, library, and billiard rooms (272 m²) for events or external hire; and the South Wing (1930s), repurposed for offices and/or additional flats.
Client: Morden College
Architects: West Scott rchitects